Precision dispenser for liquids, comprising a device for remote control and monitoring

ABSTRACT

There is described a precision dispenser for liquids, in particular medications, which allows the remote control of all operations associated with dispensing the medication to the patient so as to avoid abuses.

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 62/365,696 filed Jul. 22, 2016 which is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of precision dispensers forliquids, in particular liquid pharmaceutical compositions.

BACKGROUND

As is known, certain pharmaceutical compositions in liquid form areadministered through dispensers that dispense the amount required asindicated by the general practitioner.

The problems associated with dispensing precision have already beenstudied since long and overcome by means of various devices such as forexample the automatic liquid dispenser patented by the same Applicant(see EP 1 165 010).

However, when the pharmaceutical compositions, due to their nature, maycause wrongful behavior by the user or third parties (e.g. in case ofmethadone or other medicaments for treating drug addiction), absolutecontrol not only on the amount but on the general conditions of deliverybecome essential.

Currently, devices for dispensing liquids, and more specificallymedicaments in liquid form requiring increased and monitored dispensingprecisions, are for the most part apparatuses monitored locally by a PCwhich is given the bureaucratic task of recording the data according tothe local laws and of controlling the system by taking the informationfrom its memory and dispensing the amount prescribed.

It is therefore evident the importance of an apparatus which not onlyallows to monitor and dispense the liquid with extreme precision, butalso prevents improper use of the medicament administered without themandatory presence of operators at the medicament distribution site,which would obviously be unfeasible for practical reasons.

SUMMARY

It is describe a precision dispenser for liquids, in particularmedicament, that allows the remote control of all the operationsassociated with dispensing the medicament to the patient so as to avoidabuses.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying FIG. 1 shows schematically a device according to theinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention allows to overcome the aforesaid problems by meansof a precision dispenser for liquids, comprising means capable ofinterfacing with a remote data server which provides the informationrequired to manage the controlled dispensing of the medicament through apreliminary identification of the user, verifying that the user does notattempt to take more than his/her prescribed dose by going to otherdispensing centers in a short time.

On the other hand, the system also allows the patient to access the doseof medicament required at any center equipped with a device according tothe invention, with significant advantages not only for the patient butalso for the whole national care service, since it would no longer benecessary to deliver the medicament at patient's home.

The device according to the invention also allows to have all the users'data at the dispensing centers in a particular country to be arranged ina centralized manner and under secure computer technology, this allowingto use this information for assessments and statistical reports on theuser population, understanding better the regional needs anddistribution thereof, and managing samples of population in order toimprove and/or expand the care service.

In particular, in accordance with the present invention, the above saidprecision dispenser comprises:

-   -   contact or contactless (c-less) card/tag/chip readers;    -   any security keyboards for the patient to introduce his/her PIN;    -   recognition readers;    -   any GPS position detection systems;    -   an SBC (Single Board Computer) unit capable of interfacing the        above devices and of connecting to the central management system        in wired, wireless (Wi-Fi) mode or through the telephone        network.

As seen in the accompanying FIGURE, the device according to theinvention comprises a pharmacological substance dispenser 1 of knowntype, equipped with a hydraulic and electronic control system forperforming its function.

Said function is controlled by an external processor 9 which containsthe using profiles of all patients, the amounts of medication to beadministered, their therapeutic protocol, etc.

Dispenser 1 is then interfaced with a device 2 (SBC) capable ofoperating autonomously and equipped with RAM and EEPROM memory, and alsowith an SSD disc, standard interfaces capable of accommodatingexpansions of various nature, including for example Wi-Fi.

Dispenser 1 is equipped with a card reader 5, possibly a secure keyboard6, a recognition reader 7 and a monitor 10 (possibly touch-screen).

The card reader 5 is a device of known type capable of reading (contactor contactless) cards or tags, which allow the registration of theusers, and therefore their first-level identification.

The secure keyboard 6 allows a PIN (Personal Identification Number) tobe entered, thus allowing the second-level identification of the user ifrequired.

The recognition reader 7 may be, for example, a fingerprint reader or afacial recognition reader (or other similar device), and allows thesecond- or third-level identification (depending on whether or not thesecure keyboard is used).

The reader allows to read the fingerprint (or the face and/or iris,respectively) of the user when acquiring the identity of the user, whileit is used as a validation instrument when checking his/her identity bycomparing it with the data recorded by the system.

The touchscreen monitor 10 (Man Machine Interface) allows the dialoguebetween the user of the device and the machine, and displays the outputand receives the inputs of the APPs running on the SBC (2) for acquiringthe identity data and checking them after the check with the network, asexplained hereinbelow.

Card reader 5, secure keyboard 6 and recognition reader all interfacewith device 2 (SBC).

Moreover, if desired, dispenser 1 may be interfaced with a tablet 3(integrated therein or connected externally) which allows to analyzedata and remotely monitor the device, especially by healthcarepersonnel.

If required, dispenser 1 may also be interfaced with a GPS positiondetector which allows the position of the dispensing center (e.g. if itis mobile) to be detected in real time by means of the SBC device above.

All the above-described devices allow the unambiguous and secureidentification of the patient in order to ensure the correct dispensingof the medication according to the treatment plan established forhim/her by the healthcare personnel.

Said identification occurs for example when the user requests themedication to be dispensed by providing a contactless card and with theacquisition of the fingerprint or the facial verification.

Suitable and known multimedia communication modes (e.g. connection tothe network, all types of possible wired connections or those supportedby the telephone or satellite network) are used to transfer thisinformation to a WEB application, normally a CLOUD-based application,which records and stores the information in real time. These data,together with the treatment information related to the medicationdispensing event, are read in the other direction through queries to theDatabase Server in order to ensure there are no attempts to make doubledispensing requests, performed for example in a different medicationdispensing center within a given period of time.

As noted in FIG. 1, the system is obviously mediated by a DSL interface(ADSL, XDSL or analogue connections), which allows the connection to theCLOUD and accordingly the two-way log in between all devices installedin the medication dispensing centers and the Web Server Applicationinstalled on the Cloud.

As indicated above, the system is capable of operating autonomouslythrough the SBC, but a connection of dispenser 1 to a PC 9 may beprovided, if required, thus taking advantage of an API control interfaceto control the dispensing activities and the local registrations, aswell as the management of the activities of transferring the medicationsaccording to the local regulations and the reporting activities incompliance with the legal regulations of the country where the apparatusis installed, at the end of the daily session.

What is claimed is:
 1. A liquid methadone dispenser device comprising: aliquid methadone precision dispenser comprising a hydraulic andelectronic control system configured to be operated by a remotecomputing device external to the liquid methadone precision dispenser todispense pre-determined doses of liquid methadone, at an accuracy within0.5% by volume of the pre-determined doses, to a plurality of patientsbased on a therapeutic protocol established by a healthcare provider foreach of the plurality of patients; a patient identification deviceintegrated with the liquid methadone dispenser; and a computing deviceexternal to and remotely coupled to the liquid methadone dispenser, thecomputing device being connected via one or more communication networksto a remote web-based server storing an identification profilecomprising the therapeutic profile for each of the plurality ofpatients, the computing device comprising a processor and a memorycoupled to the processor which is configured to execute one or moreprogrammed instructions comprising and stored in the memory to: receivea patient request from one of the plurality of patients forauthorization to dispense the predetermined dose of the liquid methadoneat the patient identification device, wherein each of the plurality ofpatients are authorized to receive the liquid methadone from a pluralityof liquid methadone dispensers in a plurality of geographical locations;transfer the patient request via the one or more communication networksto the remote web-based server; provide instructions to control thehydraulic and electronic control system of the liquid methadonedispenser to dispense the pre-determined dose of the liquid methadoneupon a receipt of an authorization from the web-based server based onthe patient request; and provide instructions to the liquid methadonedispenser not to dispense the pre-determined dose of the liquidmethadone upon receipt of a non-authorization from the web-based server,wherein the non-authorization is based on an attempt by the one of theplurality of patients to obtain more than the pre-determined dose of theliquid methadone from another of the plurality of liquid methadonedispensers within a period of time.
 2. The device according to claim 1,further comprising a tablet computing device integrated to the liquidmethadone dispenser device and the computing device.
 3. The deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the patient identification devicecomprises one or more of a reader device, a secure keyboard, a patientrecognition reader, or a touchscreen.
 4. The device according to claim3, wherein the reader device is a contact or contactless card, tag, orchip reader, or a magnetic card reader.
 5. The device according to claim3, wherein the patient recognition reader is a facial reader or afingerprint reader.
 6. The device according to claim 1, wherein thecomputing device is a single board computing device.
 7. The deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the liquid methadone dispenser isinterfaced to a GPS position detector through the computing device.
 8. Amethod for controlling and monitoring dispensing liquid methadone to apatient comprising: receiving, by a computing device external andremotely coupled to a liquid methadone precision dispenser comprising ahydraulic and electronic control system configured to be operated by theremote computing device external to the liquid methadone precisiondispenser to dispense pre-determined doses of liquid methadone, at anaccuracy within 0.5% by volume of the pre-determined doses, to aplurality of patients based a therapeutic protocol established by ahealthcare provider for each of the plurality of patients and connectedvia one or more communication networks to a remote web-based serverstoring an identification profile comprising the therapeutic profile foreach of the plurality of patients, a patient request for authorizationto dispense the liquid methadone at a patient authorization deviceintegrated with the liquid methadone dispenser upon receipt of thepatient request for authorization to dispense the liquid methadone,wherein each of the plurality of patients are authorized to receive theliquid methadone from a plurality of the liquid methadone dispensers ina plurality of geographical locations; transferring, by the computingdevice, the patient request via the one or more communication networksto the remote web-based server; providing, by the computing device,instructions to control the hydraulic and electronic control system ofthe liquid methadone dispenser to dispense the pre-determined dose ofthe liquid methadone upon a receipt of an authorization from theweb-based server based on the patient request; and providing, by thecomputing device, instructions to the liquid methadone dispenser not todispense the pre-determined dose of the liquid methadone upon receipt ofa non-authorization from the web-based server, wherein thenon-authorization is based on an attempt by the one of the plurality ofpatients to obtain more than the pre-determined dose of the liquidmethadone from another of the plurality of liquid methadone dispenserswithin a period of time.
 9. A system comprising: a web-based serverstoring an identification profile comprising a therapeutic profile foreach of a plurality of patients; a plurality of liquid methadoneprecision dispenser devices located in a plurality of geographiclocations, each of the plurality of liquid method precision dispenserdevices comprising: a liquid methadone precision dispenser comprising ahydraulic and electronic control system configured to be operated by aremote computing device external to the liquid methadone precisiondispenser to dispense pre-determined doses of liquid methadone, at anaccuracy within 0.5% by volume of the pre-determined doses, to aplurality of patients based on a therapeutic protocol established by ahealthcare provider for each of the plurality of patients; a patientidentification device integrated with the liquid methadone dispenser;and a computing device external to and remotely coupled to the liquidmethadone dispenser, the computing device being connected via one ormore communication networks to the web-based server, the computingdevice comprising a processor and a memory coupled to the processorwhich is configured to execute one or more programmed instructionscomprising and stored in the memory to: receive a patient request fromone of the plurality of patients for authorization to dispense thepredetermined dose of the liquid methadone at the patient identificationdevice, wherein each of the plurality of patients are authorized toreceive the liquid methadone from the plurality of liquid methadonedispensers in the plurality of geographic locations; transfer thepatient request via one or more communication networks to the web-basedserver; provide instructions to control the hydraulic and electroniccontrol system of the liquid methadone dispenser to dispense thepre-determined dose of the liquid methadone upon a receipt of anauthorization from the web-based server based on the patient request;and provide instructions to the liquid methadone dispenser not todispense the pre-determined dose of the liquid methadone upon receipt ofa non-authorization from the web-based server, wherein thenon-authorization is based on an attempt by the one of the plurality ofpatients to obtain more than the pre-determined dose of the liquidmethadone from another of the plurality of liquid methadone dispenserswithin a period of time.